Third Time's the Charm
by Deathwriter42
Summary: Based after the movie. Jason is thought to be dead from the explosion and he's given the chance to start over again. However, fate doesn't like to play nice. He now finds himself in an even bigger mess then before, and this time he didn't even do anything besides accept a helping hand. Rated T for screwed language.
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome to another new story, and to those waiting on others don't worry I'm working. Just had to get this out of my head before I explode!**

_**Disclaimer: No, don't own any characters from the DC universe. This is fan based and it's meant to be fun.**_

* * *

The ringing in his ear from the explosion still ran through his head as he trudges down unused alleys. Fortunately for him he wasn't bleeding obsessively, but most of the pain he suffers from comes from internal injuries like broken bones and strained muscles. He had worst though. There was the night of his murder is one, and the night of his resurrection is a close top as well. But now, he doesn't know what he's feeling and sees no reason to keep going.

From a distance he can hear the sirens going off from first responders and soft traffic sounds coming from behind the tall brick walls.

He finally falls as he trips over some trash bags from an overfilled dumpster **(people, you must recycle! Half of that shit is recyclable!)** and lands hard face first. Slumping up against the wall, he finds no strength to get up again and gives in to the darkness. In the phase between life and death, he could hear footsteps coming his way. '_A woman_' he thought as the clicking of heels gets closer and stops a few feet away from him.

Those said heels now run towards him, and said person starts to shake him. "Hey dude, wake up! You'll catch your death if you sleep out here." The voice held true concern, a rarity in this city full of strangers, as she tries to get him back from the world beyond.

He shakes her off and tries, to no avail, to shift away from the warm hand. "Shut up, I don't need you to tell me that." His voice came out cold and cracked, giving himself extra points for not sounding weak and in need; but with life just loving to suck ass, he moved the wrong way and let out a struggled breath.

She obviously caught this sign, and through the dim lighting of the ally she could see some bones poking out here and there. "Damn, you're hurt aren't you. Come on, we need to get you to a hospital."

She attempts to get him up by using her body to hold him up, but he wouldn't have it. "Fuck off, I don't need your help. If I die here, so be it." He shoves her off and he falls again.

She huffed as she crossed her arms, pondering on what to do. "No way in hell. You're not dying right in front of my home." She tries to pick him up again, but the size difference between the two of them becomes a big issue for her. "Do you know how rank the smell of death is in the morning? Get the hell up." Again, he shakes her off and they both fall to the ground.

He wipes sweat from his forehead as frustration starts to build up within him. That frustration brought new energy as he was now able to stand up, her following, and he easily beat her on height as well. "There's no fucking way I'm going to a god damn hospital." The air around the woman felt like she's also becoming very frustrated. '_Stubborn bitch,_' he thought as there's no sign of her giving up. "I told you to leave me the fuck alone and- ow, did you actually just kick an injured person?" He holds his shin as the pain subsides, but he falls from lost of balance.

Her face holds a triumphant smirk. "Yes I did, now get off your fucking lazy ass and come on. You won't survive an hour in this city if you're like this. I know life is a bitch, but we're all damned and fucked, so just rely on a little charity once in a while."

"You don't even know what's it like to survive. I bet your just a prissy spoiled brat thinking you're all that just because you're raised in one of the most dangerous cities in this country. Don't even joke about the shit that goes on around here."

"Ya, I know what's it like here. Now just shut up and let me help you."

"Why help a scummy stranger like me. Better for you to let me die here."

"I said to shut your fucking mouth the hell up! Unlike others around here I have a blood conscious." Before he could spew out another line of cusses back at her, he feels a hard impact hit him on his neck before fading into the dark numbness.

* * *

To what felt to him like a few seconds past, real time it was mid afternoon, he woke to face a ceiling and smell of food lingering throughout the air space. The smell made his stomach whine since he hasn't really had a decent meal ever since he retuned from Death's grasps, but looking around made him couscous as he didn't recognize this alien place he finds himself in at the moment. To top it off, he didn't have a shirt on and couldn't find any of the weapons he still had on him from the explosion.

He lay on an old lumpy bed, and he could easily feel that his wounds were bounded and wrapped in a very skillful manner so that movement wasn't a threat to him. There's also a soft humming of a melody coming from the same direction as the scent of fresh food. Jason finally sat up and paused to let the blood return to its normal circulation, not knowing that the minimum sound from his movements has alerted the other person just on the other side of the door. When he stood on his feet, a sudden pain from his shoulder cries and he couldn't help the soft moan that escaped from his cracked lips. "Sorry I couldn't do much for your shoulder. If I moved you, you would have woken up." He was startled. Even on his worst day, it was hard for anyone to be able to sneak up on this former vigilante. He turns to the voice he recognizes as the same girl from last night, and his emerald eyes lock with crystal blue eyes.

The haze of the pain and dim lighting now clear allows him to get a better look at the person who supposedly saved him from Death's front door. There was something about her that reminded him of someone, but he couldn't put the pieces together. Physical features of her is a lean short woman that could easily be mistaken for a child if she dressed like one. She's pretty, but saying gorgeous was pushing it, more like she'll make a perfect mom figure. Her black hair is in a messy pony tail, and wearing what'll typically be called a lazy day outfit.

As he a analyzed her, she walks towards him silently to a nightstand just beside him covered with gauze and medicine. "Here. If you don't want it to hurt that much anymore, then let me wrap it up." Two voices screamed through his head; one saying to let her help him with his injury, while the other cusses and yells for him to get out of there. But with a slight shift of his arm gave the first voice the win and left her to quickly wrap his limp.

They were both silent as she finished, and he could feel a little better about accepting her help. With silence playing in the air, she packed the materials away as he looked through the window for a beautiful view of Gotham bay. He was lost in thought when she spoke, her voice dragging him out of the deep caverns of his brain. "Can you walk? Or do you want to eat your food here?" He didn't turn to face her, she almost doubted that he heard her.

A few seconds past without a response, so she starts to head out the door when he responds with a question, "Why'd you help me?" Looking over her shoulder, she could see that he wasn't facing her still. "If you think I'll pay you back to show how grateful I am, don't hold your breath. I'm penny-less and there's no where in hell will I ever be a sex toy."

Without even looking, he could tell that she felt pissed about his last retort. But her voice showed patience, calmness and warmth, "Whatever happened to just helping out another human being?" She turns to open the door, but she has to throw one more thing out before she heads into the other room, "And I can get a dick anywhere. There's no way I'll ask for some from a street rat." She left and closed the door, cutting off the next words about to jump out of him.

Again, she left with being able to say the last word. A total stranger. He always had the last word. Only a few others know how to leave him speechless, but this is the second time she left before he could say anything, and that pissed him off. The hunger also fuelled his anger, and the effects of that lagoon is still fresh inside his mind. '_This bitch doesn't know the danger she's in. Maybe I should scare her a bit._' A smirk slowly came to his face as he pictured the look on her face when he tells her. But then a little thing called his conscience got to him, and he decided against it.

Before he could change his mind again, he walked to the window and opened it. The air wasn't the freshest, but it's open and free. Better then inside the cramped apartment. Looking down was a five story drop, but he jumped higher rooftops and this little jump would only have leave small damages to his already broken body. Just at the moment his left leg goes off the ledge, she choose to come in with a tray of food. The normal response would be to drop the tray and run to help, but her's just landed on an arched brow and she calmly places the food down on a desk just beside the door. "Really? You're actually planing on jumping a five story window with those injuries? It's either you're damn careless about your own health, or you're amazingly stupid."

He forced himself not to sigh or say anything that could lead her to calling the cops, "Look, don't take this the wrong way but if I stay here, you'll be in trouble." He turns away, getting ready to slip through the window, "So, with that in mind-" Without him noticing, she appears behinds him and cuts him off.

"Do you really think I'm stupid?" She grabs his uninjured shoulder, and with surprising strength, pulls him back in. "Say any excuse you want, but you'll die out there. Even a skilled fighter knows their own weakness. And this is yours." She lightly touches one of his bandages and a surge of pain flows throughout his body. "Did you even think about what might happen if you didn't land properly? You'd be paralyzed at best."

He picks himself up without her help, and glares her down. His height gives him extra intimidation, but that still hasn't fazed her. "If you knew who I really am then you'll think twice about helping me and having me in here."

"Try me." She smirked, showing no fear of who he might be. "You've been awake for a while and there's no problem."

He took a step closer, and hardens his glare. Most people would shrivel at the air around him, but she stood just as tall and unaffected by his stance. He was impressed with her bravery, but that alone wouldn't help her against him. "And if I were to tell you I'm the Red Hood?" Once the words flew out of his mouth, he expected her to feel scared and easily kicked him out, but he got a much different reaction.

"If you are, then why don't you kill me?" She turned around and went to the night stand again. In the drawer came out his gun and he can clearly see his other weapons in the same drawer. She took the gun out and tossed it to him. "If you really are who you say you are, then you'll need this." There's wasn't even a hint of hesitation in her words, it was like she was just talking about the weather or what's for dinner. "But if you're really sure about going out, and if you really are who you say you are, then you're a dead man even without your injuries. There's a lot of people out for your head."

He was torn with leaving and facing his death, to staying for an uncertain fate. Looking into her eyes gave no hint of whats in her mind. It reminded him of a formal life, where he'd blindly follow a code he feels he'll always question. "Are you actuatlly saying that you'll care of a total stranger, and one that could protentionally be a murder? And on the top of not only the police's list, but even the Batman's list." He inwardley smirked, curious of what her answer be. "Even if the chance of lengthing your life is right infront of you? Are you looking for protection, or do you just go for the bad boy type?"

Again, her response is something he would never guess. "Do I really look like the desperate type? Besides, there's a whole range of 'bad boys' just outside this door. And if you think that you're that much of a big shot, then if you make me fall on my knees then I'll let you leave." Something shone in her eyes for a moment, but it was muddled and flashed dully. However, that one flash was enough. Enough to show that there wasn't any hidden motive to her kindness. But he couldn't trust it. He shouldn't.

He knows nothing of this person infront of him, except that she's skilled in medical care and has a strong backbone. Also that famillure feeling he gets at just looking at her. Almost like a girl version of someone, but he couldn't place a strong guess on who. Other then that, she's a total stranger. And the quote '_stranger dange_r' was beat into the minds of children ever since they were allowed to get out of the house, but not him. Strangers were never a problem to him, the police was one, but never strangers.

Still broken between the choices of leaving and staying, her bargin would be easy. Just the fact of hurting an innocent person, even a woman smaller then him, still effected him. Even through the whole ordeal of being a crime lord by force and fear, he still wanted to protect the innocent. But this situation called for the use of force. "I'll take you up on your offer."

A smirk graced her lips as if she was expecting him to say exactly that, "Good. Now choose. Attack first or defend?" Confusion painted his featured, thinking how crazy it was for her to let him choose how this fight went.

'_Well, it'll be an easy win._' He thought, knowing full well that he'll be able to take her down even with his injuries, and he'll be scott free. Without even saying anything, he went for the direct charge and throws in a fast left hook. Making contact, the results as always wasn't what he was expecting.

His fist made contact, yes, but not where he was aiming for. She somehow managed to catch his arm without even a moments hesitation to what could happen if she wasn't fast enough. He retrated his arm to his side, and glared a bit at her cockey grin. "You're actually skilled." He sneered as her smirk deepened.

"You need skill that'll match your core in this city. And my core is rock solid." Not even wasting a second, he went in for another attack which she easily blocked. This went on a little longer, him aiming at all her open areas and attacking, only for her to easily block him in that last second. Neither side was giving in, until she finally decided to end it. The final punch was thrown and again she caught it, only the difference from then and now is the fact that she grabbed hold of his arm and shifted both of their weight. Resulting in him being carried off his feet and flipping ontop of the bed, which was right behind her.

A trumpant smirked fell on her again, placing her hands on her hips and looking very pleased with the result. "And you wanted to go out in the streets again. You can't even beat someone my size." She stuck out her hand for him and he accepted her offer. A sense of respect fell between the two, that fight held a lot of meaning between the lines. It showed their personalities and their true intention, and in a way it has brought them both on common ground. Though the idea of being easily taken down by a woman the size of a girl did hurt his pride, he knew that he wasn't at his best and there was obvious signs that this woman wasn't even trying her hardest.

In a way, it made the situation interesting. Usually women would be an open book to him, or be total obvious about their interest in him that it'll be very annoying, very fast. But not only did she show no interest in him; the more he learns about her, the more questions forms. He wondered for a second if he got that trait from HIM, but shook that thought out. It might just be because she's different from all the others he's met, and it's natural curiosity that has him wanting to stay.

Or maybe, he was sick and tired of being on the streets and hiding. Always on the move. Always on edge. Maybe here, he could actually start over again. Be normal for once in his life. Get a job, find a home and maybe settle down. Just maybe he could erase everything and just be Jason Todd, or someone else since that Jason Todd to the public is dead and not alive by some weird ancient water.

Either way, he just feels like it would be better to stay here then out there. Sure it's unclear if this will be the right choice or not, but he's willing to take this chance. It's a 50/50 shot. What does he have to lose? His life? He shouldn't even be breathing or feeling pain. At least this choice looks like he'd be taken care of and no certain death. Yet.

* * *

**Well that's it for now. Tell me what you think, and if you want more. The results of the reviews will show next week. I'm gonna try again for a weekly update, but in order to do that I need the reviews from you guys. I hope I can see you all next weeK!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I still want to do this story, and really the ideas are just fun. So anyone up for some fun please read along!**

**_Disclaimer: No, don't own any characters from the DC universe. This is fan based and it's meant to be fun._**

* * *

It's been a couple weeks since Jason was dragged from the alley to a warm bed, and he's been healing fine. He's gotten plenty of rest from her strict orders, and now all that's left are a few bruises. Their routine would be what you'll call normal, but there's only one thing that's out of the ordinary. Jason still doesn't know the name of this girl.

Not like he's given her an actual introduction, she just addresses him as Red and he'd just use the usual 'hey you' to call her. It was like they have a formal agreement that names were strictly off limits. But it was ok, since names would soon get you attached to something, and he didn't want anymore attachments that should never have been made.

Another thing that bothered him was how quiet that girl is. There'd be times when he's looking for her and turns out she's not even in the apartment, then out of nowhere she'd appear like she'd never left. There was one time in the middle of the night she left. He heard her leave the silent apartment at around midnight and come back near dawn. There was heavy breathes, deadly cusses, and metal clanging on the floor. But when he got up to see what was going on, she disapperared into her room at the opostie end of the apratment and never found his answers.

And just around an hour later, he sees her walking around like she haven't been up all night doing whatever she does. He could also see that under her clothes seemed to hide bandages that covered most of her body. '_That could explain why she's good at medical care in America_.' He thought, examining what little he could see of her wounds.

Speaking of wounds, there's one he noticed that's a slight scar. It's small and unnoticeable, but he got a glance when she was cooking. Her hair was put up as always and he was in the small kitchen to help as much as he can. That's when he sees the two small holes on her neck, they were almost bite like. The location was at the back of her neck and just a little under her hairline, making the mark even more harder to spot. If he wasn't trained to see every detail he'd easily missed it.

Other then those shall we say 'abnormalities,' she's like any other girl that lives in the ghettos of Gotham. There looks to be like a steady income seeing as all the utilities work and the apartment is big enough for the both of them to have their own space; however, there's no sign of a uniform or any kind of job that could have a decent wage to be able to pay for everything. Well, anything legal at least. Some guess were either that she's in the prostitution or hostess business. Or she could be part of a gang or underground mafia. Either is a good guess, seeing as she's able to defend herself easily. But they're not sitting with him very well.

Though it would explain why she's able to stand a said killer to be staying in her private residence and her late night excursions, there's no evidence at all that she does those sort of things. So yes, he has many questions and little answers. He could get answers the usual way and look through her room just opposite of his, but something was stopping him. It wasn't guilt, he felt that before and in the past he'd look into people's personal life all the time. He even did it to his guardian. But when he gets close to the door when he knows she's outside doing whatever she's doing, something pulls him away. He guessed that it was his instincts telling him that that door should never be opened. That the answers he's looking for is something he should never know. His instinct was strong enough to stop him from finding answers, but not wanting to find the answers.

Sitting on the windowsill in the living room, he watches the steady movement down below as he tries to piece together what he knows of his so called 'saviour.' Without him noticing, she stood just in front of him. Her head tilted slightly to the side as she studied him for a second. Before she could get too lost in thought and forget what she was doing, she pokes his cheek to get his attention. Normally she'd expect a person to jump from shock from being that deep in thought; but getting to know him a little, she knows that it'll take much more then a little touch of skin to have him jump. '_Or maybe he's just good at hiding his true emotions._' She thought as a final note.

Jason turns to face her, knowing full well that it's her from her signature signal of getting his attention. "Hey, you ok?" As usual, she showed concern for him. "You look like you're about to explode from whatever you were thinking of."

He gives her a cocky grin, "And you think the best way is to bug me? What if I was going through a rage and snapped? Your neck would have been the next thing that'll snap." As always there's no fear in her eyes or regret on her face.

She rolls her eyes and sits on the other side of the windowsill. "Well sorry for trying to be helpful. You've been like that for almost an hour and you looked like you weren't going anywhere. I thought I might help." He reads her eyes and see nothing hidden. Quickly he thinks of different scenarios that could happen if he asks, so his safest bet would be just to find out her name. At least it's a different turn from just saying 'you' all the time.

Just an easy question, but the outcome is not to his liking. "What's your name?" By the looks of it, it looks like she'll burst from holding in her laugh. A bit ticked off, he glares daggers at her. "I'm being serious. I've just been calling you without a name, and even after all this time I don't know it."

She tries to calm her laughing to a chuckle before answering. "Really? You want to know my name even though you haven't even told me yours? You're kind of skipping steps here." He opens his mouth to answer, but then closes it again knowing that she was right. Why should she tell him her name when he didn't even do the same? She sees that he wasn't really satisfied with the answer so she decides to give him a bone. "If it really bugs you that much, then just call me Jay. It's a name I go by with friends."

Jay. Reading her gives no hint on whether it's really her name or not, but it's better then nothing. He sticks out his hand for her to take and they both shake hands. "Well Jay, it's nice to finally get a name." It felt weird to him to call someone by the same name he used to have.

She smiles in a joking manner, but the smile was true. "It's nice to meet you too Red. Hope we can get along."

* * *

It's around 2 in the afternoon now, and it's time to change the bandages again. Everyday he's improving and it felt like his time here would soon come to an end. Jay quickly finished wrapping Red up again, and he went back to staring out of the window. It's their usual routine and they've gotten used to each other's company, maybe a little too used to it now.

While he stares out the window and somewhat 'rest' Jay gets busy with whatever goes through her mind. Today she just decides to watch some TV and rest before she has to go later. Not even paying attention to what's being shown, she thinks that it's a police drama or something, she plays back the events of the previous days.

A question always plays again through her head, why did she help him? Out of all the people there on the street, she helps him. She doesn't quite get it herself seeing as it doesn't take a Sherlock to know that he could have taken care of himself. It bugged her this whole time, it was like a in the moment decision. Ya, she wanted him away from her house so she wouldn't wake up to rotting flesh the next morning, but helping was never part of the agenda. There was just something that pulled her into helping him.

She considered that maybe she found him attractive, but then again she's met a lot of people that could easily pass him in the look factor so she crossed that out. There was no relation to between them, but this event. Which would soon end and they'll become strangers again. Then again, it wouldn't be that bad seeing as she doesn't want her secret to be out. Most of her life forced her into questioning everything and sit back and watch everything play out until there's a definite chance of winning and survival. But she broke every rule she swore to and let a total stranger to come into her home, and almost get caught with her late night activities. After that one night of almost getting caught, she just climbs in and out of her bedroom window to lessen the chance of getting caught.

It's a pain, but then again life was never going to go her way, not with this secret holding her down. Maybe he could help her get out of this mess, but she shook that plan out of her head knowing that she shouldn't get anymore people involved. Plus he claims to be a major crime lord, even if he hasn't done anything to her and if that rumor is that he doesn't hurt innocent people, there's still that danger of the truth being spilled. And she knows that if the truth were to leak then blood would soon follow. There's too much blood lost, so she choose the path without much blood the best she can.

Taking a quick peek with her peripheral vision she examines him. He's a good fighter and she can easily tell that he's well trained. She remembers back to the night she first met him and how beat up he looked slumped on the wall. At first it looked like he was a dead body, but with a closer look he was barely breathing. That's when something pulled her closer to confront him, she didn't even have a full control for some reason and that's when she got him up, at least she had control of what she said, it was like there was a little voice in her head forcing her to help him and before she knew what she was doing she got him in her brother's room.

Now her life isn't that lonely. There's someone here even if she doesn't know much about him. Well no, the truth was that she used to be totally normal. She had parents, an older brother and a great family that was never related to her. But that all changed in that one night she was pronounced dead along with her family. What the police didn't know was that she and her brother survived, but they had to change their name and their whole life went downhill from there. At least they were together from then till a few years ago. Those few years was when she was totally alone in this apartment. Even though she has what people would call 'friends' just outside the doors, she kept her distance because of the secret just hidden behind her eyes. She learned to lie, cheat and kill throughout the years, and even though her brother tried his best to stop her from going down that path, they both knew that they both need those skills in order to survive their new lives.

Her eyes itched as she stared at the screen, and her vision began to blur. Quickly, she blinked the coming tears away as discreet as she can and kept her face calm. Thinking about her brother, the only one that knew what she was going through and her only confidant, is scarring as it'll always result in her seeing his body. His body was hung by a rope around his neck and it was badly beaten, burned and slashed with both whips and knives. She could tell by the look on his face was he's gone through hours of torture before they finally let him rest for eternity. The warning from the others still rang through her skull, "_Don't think we're not watching you._" the whispers from the dark would haunt her for the next couple of nights before she finally deemed it safe to return to the home she kept secret from the others. Here they wouldn't find her, here at least she was safe from the eyes.

A cool breeze danced through the room and a quick glance to Red shows that he opened the window. Throwing him a questioning look he just smirks and jumps out. He does that sometimes, but for some reason he always comes back. The wounds on his body is less intense now, and this window was only a two story drop to the next roof top, so a well trained person wouldn't get hurt. Sometimes she'll watch him jump from rooftop to rooftop until he disappears, from watching she can tell that he wasn't your regular criminal. The guns she got off him was also custom made and was absolutely flawless. The scary part was that it fit him so well that maybe he was trained to be a hunter.

She'd be lying if she said that the thought of him being sent out to kill her never came to her, it did show itself at the times in the beginning but she was reassured with the fact that he was hurt and she could easily beat him down. But when he got to the point where the injuries wouldn't stop him, she worried that she'd find herself with a bullet somewhere if she wasn't careful. A couple days past then and still she's breathing life, and there's no sign of him planning to kill her. The thought that maybe he was waiting till she fully trusts him was also fresh, and it's clear that he could easily overpower her when she wasn't ready, but still nothing happened. '_Maybe he asked for my name to confirm that I'm his target, but then again he might actually be Red Hood and is just looking for more information for himself._' She thought as she got up and turned the TV off. '_I should go grocery shopping for dinner. There's always too much of a rush when office workers get off._' With that in mind, she slipped out of the door like a normal person.

* * *

Jason flies over the rooftops and feels better as the air whips his face. Sometimes going through the skies reminds him of the old days from before everything was screwed up. To the world again, he was dead. Maybe he can start over like he thought at that first night, but then he needs to find a job and get an ID for his new name. Jay looks like she's got some sort of network, maybe she can help him. Then again she helped him a lot already and he doesn't want to trouble her anymore. He still has his pride.

He finds a roof in an isolated area and gets down to the streets. It helps him clear his mind and it's something to do instead of staying inside. Walking down the streets where you could find deals going on also remind him of a former life. Placing his hands in his jacket, or more like in Jay's brother's jacket (_he could tell that it was a touchy subject so he never asked what happen_), he feels like another citizen of this big city. He wasn't some vigilante's sidekick or a crime lord looking out for revenge anymore, just some man who's walking down the street to some destination.

Maybe this time he'll just be part of the crowd and be a model citizen. He did have two lives worth of action and danger, so now he just wants what people seem to take for granted.

Taking a few turns around corners he finds himself in an area that's mixed of street thugs and honest people. Then there was a common screech coming from the back way of a grocery store. Without even taking a breath he finds himself running to where the voice was located. The moment he got there he had to stop to see if what he's seeing is really there.

Before him is Jay covering a pregnant woman from five men each caring a rape face on them. One man charged to them and Jay easily caught his fits before she went in to break his nose. A second got behind her and tried to knock her from below, but she was too quick and jumped out of the way. "Jay!" Jason called as he snapped out of his shock. He comes running and takes on another two just behind their friends.

They both work together in covering the pregnant woman and soon four of the five men are out for the count. Both of them turn to the last thug standing, he takes a gun out and aims at them. "Don't move or I'll shot you!" The thug commanded in a not so convincing tone. However, that didn't scare them and they both mirror each other's smirk. "I'll do it! I'll actually shot you both dead!"

Jay had to hold back a chuckle as she gave Jason a side glance, "What do you think Red? Fight or flight?"

He returned her all knowing amusement and threw the thug a sinister glance, "Him flight, I fight." And before the thug could even think about pulling the trigger Jason quickly moved forward and knocked the gun out of his hands. A heartbeat later, the thug got knocked out and danger was avoid yet again.

There was a moment of silent victory before the woman they protected cried out again, but this time it's for joy. She gave a quick hug to Jason and Jay, thanking them very loudly. "Oh thank you so much. How can I ever thank you?"

"There's no need to thank us." Jason smiled to the woman and she slightly blushed a bit.

She giggled slightly as she got herself together, "My would your children have charming parents." The woman elbowed Jay and gave her a knowing smirk, "But I'm sure they'll become amazing people like the two of you."

Jay gave the woman a confused look, "What do you mean by that? I'm not even married."

The woman threw back her head to laugh, "Honey, in this day and age, the young get pregnant with just being in the same room as each other. Besides, I'm sure a couple like you will make a gorgeous baby together!" The woman sang her last sentence before leaving to her car . Little did she know that she just left a ticking bomb called 'awkward' behind.

"What the..." Jason started, his face feeling a few degrees higher then it should be. "The hell?" Taking a quick glance over Jay had her hands covering her face, but it was clear that her ears were bright red.

He was going to say something when she stopped him with by sticking her hand out in like a stop sign, "Don't even say anything."

"I wasn't going to." The silence was choking them from the tension and neither of them seemed to be able to break it. Sighing Jason decides to cut both of them some slack. "Why don't we just forget about it? It's easier that way." Jay nods but there's still a hint of pink on her cheeks as she looks at him, "So why are you here?"

Jay shrugs, "You know, getting food for tonight."

"You need help?" Jay tilted her head in a questioned glance, "What? At least let me help around the house now, I'm able to move freely now." He starts to head to the store, "Just consider this as pay back for helping me." Jay let out a soft chuckle as she rolls her eyes and follows him.

* * *

The both of them got through the list quickly and just had to get milk and juice. But for some reason they decide to put them on the top shelf and out of reach of Jay. "Why the fuck is it on the top today?"** (Ya, wonder why.)** Trying hard to reach the one that's in the front, but of course it has to be in the middle of the shelf. During her struggle with the milk, Jason tries his best to hold in his laughter and the juice at the same time. Jay throws him a deadly glare when she takes a break from stretching. "Really, you watch as a helpless girl struggles to get food?"

He walks up to the self and easily grabs it from the shelf, "I'm only laughing because it's you." She gives him a good punch on the shoulder, but he just shrugs it off and continues to laugh as they head to the till. Even paying, they'd poke fun of each other and the people around them each thought that it looked like a good relationship. They didn't even notice that people were watching them, some even thought that maybe they were models or something.

Outside they even fought about how much bags the other was carrying, "Red, you're injured! You can't carry that many bags at ounce!"

"I can carry as much as I want woman! You shouldn't have to carry this much." Jason grabs another two bags from her hands and she was left with the three lightest bags they have, "Besides you're a girl." The moment those words came out of his mouth he regretted it.

And he was right. Taking a quick glance, she could have killed him right then and there with just her stare. "Really? Are you really going to be that douche?"

He gives her a weak apologetic smile and tries to sound as regretful as he can, "Slip of the tongue, I swear that wouldn't happen again." Her glare only softened a bit, but he has a feeling that he's in the clear. For now. "I'm sorry. It's all I can really do to pay you back for helping me. I don't have a job and there's a lot of people who'll love to see me dead, so I can't really do much but help around with little tasks."

"Fine." She sighs out as she slowly shakes her head, "I'll let you have your male ego and help a damsel in distress." The last words were spewing with sarcasm that both of them just had to laugh. "But really, you don't have to pay me back. People just need to be more kind with one another anyways."

The rest of the walk back just became random conversation just to past the time and before they knew it they were back at the apartment building. As they were putting away the groceries Jason got the question out that he has been mulling over in his head. "Hey Jay." He called out and she answers with a quick 'ya', "Do you know if there's a place where I can work?"

Jay turns to him with her arms crossed as she thinks it over. "Starting a new leaf Red?" She arches her eyebrow as he nods and thinks again. "And I'm guessing you don't have any form of identification on you." It wasn't a question, and they both knew that. "I might have a place for you. We'll go there tomorrow after I call them." Was her final answer, and that was the end of that conversation.

* * *

**Well there you go! ****_Now I want you guys to help by putting up suggestions on what Jason's fake name should be._**** Leave suggestions in reviews and this story will come back next week!**


	3. Chapter 3

**May I start this chapter off with a warning. Warning: Names will be an issue since Jason is now going by 3 names, and most of you might already know my style with names. If not, here's a cheat sheet.**

**Jason: When it's in his point of view and not working**

**Red: When it's in Jay's point of view**

**DJ: When it's in his point of view and working**

* * *

As promised, Jay found a job that Jason could have even without all the legal stuff. It's noon on a wednesday and they were walking down a pretty high end street. Of course it's busy from the lunch rush, but with a turn of the corner the air around them became dead silent. "So here's where you'll be coming in from. Berry doesn't like it when us street rats come in from the front." Jay points out like someone doing an orientation for a new comer. "Did you pick out a name you'll be using? Your name tag should have a better name then Red. Unless you want to tell me your real name."

Jason shakes his head and a small smile plays on his lips, "Not a chance. I want to be able to forget my previous life." Jay pouts a little at not being able to know, "Just call me DJ N. Daston now." She stops walking and starts to examine him. Since they were walking side by side, he soon walked in front of her. He soon noticed that she wasn't beside him and turns to look at her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just that the name's not really clicking with me." She shrugs and returns to his side, "I'll just call you Red. To me it suits you better then DJ."

Jason felt annoyed about her comment, "What's wrong with DJ? It took me a while to think of a good name."

Jay lets out a little laugh, "Sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound insulting. There's nothing wrong with that name."They resume walking towards the back door, "It's just that I'm used to calling you Red, and I might accidentally slip up when calling you by that name. Besides, this nickname could be like an inside joke for us."

"Haha, and the joke is I'm a former pro assassin." Jason retorted sarcastically as he rolls his eyes and Jay smiles while shrugging. "Ok, move on from my name. What exactly is my job? Don't tell me I'm some host or some weird enjoyment for the rich."

"Well..." Jay was at a lost of words as she tried to choose her words carefully.

"Jay!" Jason yelled, scared that he might actually have to become a male pole dancer. Or worse.

"What? You needed a job!" She looks at him, but doesn't really look him in the eye. "And besides, it's not you'll do anything weird. You'll be a bartender." She also mumbled something else, and not being able to hear it clearly made him worry more.

"What is it Jay." It annoyed him that she wasn't being very direct like she usually is, and really it worried him a lot. Though he doesn't know much, he at least know that she usually won;t be like this unless its something that's really unpleasant.

"You'll sometimes..." More mumbles come out of her mouth, and motions for her to speak up. Sighing she lets it all out quickly, "Youmightgetaskedtobeacompanionforsometimesandactl ikeaposterboyfortheclub." It all came out in one breath, but he was able to catch it. She turns her eyes to the ground, looking really guilty. "I know you don't want to have your face put up anywhere, but this is the only honest work you could do under your circumstances. Unless you don't mind being someone's sex toy. Berry can also get you a fake ID from his rich costumers."

Jason looks at her and takes the information in. Sighing, he knows that there's not much to do for him and he should just accept it. "It's ok. If it's just pictures then I don't mind. The press never got a good look at my face anyways." He shivered at the idea of being touched in weird places, "But would I have to go to bed with them?" Jay shook her head, still finding the ground very interesting. "Well then all's good. The only problem is that I don't know a thing about bar tending, so I might get fired by my lack of skill."

Jay dared to look Jason in the eye this time, "Are you really ok with being a poster boy?" Jason nods and tries to look ok with his new job, which Jay knows he's trying his best. "If you're ok with that, I'm sure you wouldn't be fired. You'll learn fast since you're already good with your hands."

Jason nods again and the door opens to a round man dressed in a three piece suit. There's a slight angry look in his eyes, but it could just be a regular stare for him. The round man looks at Jay and Jason felt the need to step in front of her to stop this man from eating her in one bite. And with the size difference between the two of them, it could totally be 100% possible for the man to gulp Jay down. "Jay! You're two minutes late!" (Don't you just love those kind of bosses?) The man barked, and Jay just returns with a business smile, "12 o'clock means 12 o'clock! And I'm guessing this is the man who's looking for the job?" Jason froze as the man looked him over, and a creepy smile played on this man's lips. "Where do you find all these good looking men Jay? I thought you don't sleep around with men."

"Very funny Berry." Jay rolls her eyes and places her hand on her hips, getting back her usual confidence. "This is my friend, DJ N. Daston, and like I said over the phone, he wants to start over again. So he needs a job to help him get started."

Berry turns and goes back in, Jay and Jason follow behind and the smell food wraps around them. "You two eat yet?" Both Jason and Jay shake their head, and Berry ushers them to a booth in the back. "Wait here, I'll get you something good. On the house." Without another word Berry left the two alone and disappeared into the kitchen.

The restaurant slash bar, lounge has a rich feel to it, and the two were standing out like a sore thumb. The design has that of a regular lounge, off to the side there's a stage with a small drum set and a baby grand piano, while bar splits the room in two. There wasn't much light coming from the chandlers as most of the light is coming from the ceiling high windows on one wall. The whole room is dressed in black and silver, and holds a heavy mature feel to it. There's people in other tables dressed in suits and acting all sophisticated while they're dressed in jeans and shirts, looking like they just got off the streets. Even in the dim lighting, they could tell that the people are whispering something and they could feel some stares coming from other tables. "Well, how do you like your new workplace?"

"Will I be serving a bunch of princesses?" Jay gives him a 'duh' face and he sighs, "Is there any other job out there?"

She looks at him, jokingly insulted. "Hey, bar-tending is an art. You're also not qulaified enough to be a gay prostitute." Jason glares at her, and she holds back a laugh. "Ok, in retrospect a bar-tender makes good money from drunk tippers and this bar usually has loaded people coming in through those doors. Besides, Berry doesn't like to hire those with sketchy backgrounds unless it's profitable for him. So be grateful."

Jason's eyes widen at a thought, "Don't tell me you have to blow him for him to hire me. Cause I won't allow you to do that."

Jay was drink her water when all of it spilled out of her mouth. "No! Ew! No, Berry doesn't do that. He's 100% dedicated to his businesses and he's asexual. The only way for him to get hard is when he wins the money ball." They quickly wiped the water away with the cloth used to wrap the utensils. "It's not what you think. I'm doing a favour for him every couple weeks, but I'm hoping that since he approves of your look then I wouldn't have to do it."

Jason arches his brow at her, "What is this so called favour?"

"Hopefully you never have to find out." Jay smiles to reassure him, "And no, it's nothing illegal. Just really embarrassing."

Jason cracks a smile, leaning in hoping to hear more. "Oh? What is it? You know you can tell me."

"No, I rather post a nude shot on the internet then have you find out." Of course it doesn't end his questions and it goes around in a circle. People stared again, but they didn't give a damn since they just had fun teasing each other. Soon the food comes out on the table, and their stomachs couldn't hold back their growls as their eyes laid on top of the high class spread. Without another word, they dig in stuff their face.

Berry soon comes out again to their table. "So how's the food?"

"Amazing, as always." Jay smiles as she swallows a forkful of steamed vegetables.

"That's good." Berry then turns to Jason, "So DJ, I need you to start working today. Shift starts at 4:30 and ends around 11. You won't be serving drinks since you're not trained yet, but you'll take orders and payment. I'll have Sean teach you how to mix drinks when we're not busy. You might also need to work as security detail and escort some drunks to a cab." Jason nods, making notes of the information he's been given. "Jay gives lots of praise for you so you better not disappoint." He then turns to Jay to give her disappointing news. "And Jay, about what we discussed earlier. I already advertised it for tonight so you're coming in at 7 and it'll go till 10. And don't worry, Venus will have everything you'll need for tonight."

Jay groans as she puts her face in her hands, and Jason took this moment of distraction to ask Berry. "So what is this favour that Jay has to do for you."

Berry sees the mischief look in Jason's eyes, but before he could answer Jay recovers and glares at the two men. "Don't even think about telling!"

Berry steps back with his hands showing he surrenders, but a smirk is gracing his lips. "I wasn't going to. He'll find out tonight anyways." And with that he left without another word.

* * *

The sky is still painted blue as Jason walks into the bar, dressed in his work clothes. It's a simple white dress shirt and bow tie under a grey vest, matched with black loafers and black slacks. Berry is the first one to greet him, "Good, you're on time. You also seem used to getting dressed in formal attire, most people don't even know how to properly tie a bow tie nowadays."

"My father taught me how to do it. Says it makes a man look dignified." Jason straightens his tie and stands tall, remembering a time before. "So, what's the first thing I need to do?"

Berry motions for 'DJ' to follow him and brings him to another man already wiping a glass. This man is about DJ's height and very clean cut. The man's dark brown hair was gelled back and his eyes had a hard glint to it. "DJ this is Sean, your new mentor. Sean, DJ." The two men shook hands and scanned the other down. "DJ, your job is to listen and learn as quickly as you can. And don't even think that mixing drinks is an easy job." With that, Berry pats DJ on the shoulder and leaves to the back of the room.

When they were left alone, Sean chooses now to speak. "So DJ, I hear from Berry that you're pretty good with hand coordinations."

"Ya, I've been trained in self defence since I've been young." Sean chews on that idea for a minute. "I'm also pretty good with vehicle motors."

"Not really what I'm looking for, but at least you're good with your hands." Sean then starts to teach DJ the different stories behind some drinks and simple recipes that any amateur can make with a little practise. Sean of course wasn't easy with his teachings and made sure that every little detail would be perfect. Then came the dinner rush, and even with a weekday there's a lot of orders coming in for some strong drinks.

The peek of the dinner rush comes and soon the whole building is filled with people. There's whispers of a performer, and giggles from the girls staring down the new bar-tender working orders. DJ ignored the girl's stares as he asks Sean what everyone's deal was. "If you're wondering about the people waiting for the performer, you'll be in for a treat. If it's about the girls, do I even need to explain?" DJ gives him the satisfaction of giving him a fake laugh.

The work distracted DJ, then suddenly the orders just froze over. "What's going on?" He asks Sean, who's leaning on the opposite side of the bar table from him.

Sean points with his chin to the stage and a smile grows on his face. "She hasn't performed her in a while and everyone is getting anxious. Just watch and you'll see why." DJ joins Sean on the table and turns to the stage in time for the piano to start playing and the lights dim even more. He easily recognizes the tune to be 'What a Wonderful World' and soon a spotlight turns to the middle of the stage. There stood Jay dressed in a formfitting long midnight blue sequence dress. Her hair is pinned in the back as the left side of her face gets covered by her hair in a soft curl. Then she started to sing, and some men start to whistle as she moved around the stage. "What'd I tell you?"

DJ couldn't help but hold his laughter. He now knew why Jay wanted it to be quiet. He knows that this girl hates getting attention, and she's dressed up like a doll now and walking around seductively. This girl got embarrassed at the that she was coupled with him, but she's able to give off this strong pheromone that strong men could just become dogs to her. Then the songs changes to 'At Last'. with her still singing, she got down from the stage to mingle around with the crowd. She'd place her hands gently on the arms of men and quickly wink at them before moving around. Some men even have the nerve of grabbing her hand and kissing it.

Before long, orders started to come in again and he couldn't pay attention to the rest of the performance. Sometimes the he'll listening be shocked the someone like her could easily hit those notes.

* * *

The peak of the night comes and some of the audience members start to get a bit more rowdy. Some stood up and started to grab onto her the wrong way, and she couldn't do anything about it. This is why she finds it embarrassing. Not only did she have to dress like a doll for a bunch of wolves,but she couldn't even do anything about the harassment from them. She can never stand the feeling of being unable to do anything for herself, but it's part of the job and she has to trudge through her troubles.

Berry tried his best with protecting her, but there's not much you can do since most of these men were high end and would easily put him out of business without a second thought. So she doesn't blame him. Venus is good enough to hide what she really looks and she could easily beat them when no one's looking.

The last song for this hour ended without any problems, and she bowed; acting like the she enjoyed performing in front of them. The lighting returned to it's usual glow and Jay tries her best to avoid the spectators wanting to chat it up with her.

The moment the door shuts behind her does the mask falls. Venus is there with a bottle of water ready. "Darling you were great! Though it would have been better if those men knew how to keep their hands to themselves." Jay smiles to her friend. Venus acts as her desser and good friend that doesn't know too much. Venus is what you'll call a drag queen, but he claims that his heart is that of woman's and she never judges him. Even if a bystander were to come and witness the two talking, it actually looked like two women talking. Venus looks even prettier than most girls, and he didn't even have any work done on his body. Venus is also as beautiful as the name suggests, making other women jealous on how a male can look better in a dress than them.

"You know it's always like this." Jay takes the bottle gratefully and takes a few gulps. She likes the supportive and protective nature of Venus, almost reminds her of her mother a long time ago. "What can we do? They're loaded and it's hard to out talk their high priced lawyers."

Venus crosses his arms and blows a stray red strand away from his face, "Someone needs to beat the fucking crap out of them. That'll show them."

Jay feigned shock, "Venus, did you actually swear? I thought that it wasn't ladylike?"

Venus fake hits the girl, "You know very well that you got me to say this." He takes a deep breath to calm down, and a mischievous spark twinked in his ember eyes. "Since you have a break for now, why don't you tell me where you found that new boy? He's absoulty delicous. What's his name again?"

"DJ? He's a stray cat that I happened to past by. I decided to help him since he was all beat up." She shrugs like it's no big deal. "You know me, I love to help people."

However, the look on Venus' face showed that he was not convinced. "You like him. There's no way you'll get a job for a total stranger, let alone have him stay over at your place." Jay's jaw and bottle drop to the floor and Venus has the biggest smile of victory on his face. "Oh yeah, I have my ways." Venus left the room to get some air, and left the girl there mumbling to herself and an amused look on his face. "And a warning Jay. It'll become dangerous for the two of you to be under the same roof alone." And with that the door closed.

* * *

DJ and Sean **(and others) **are busy keeping the costumers happy with the efficient service, seeing as some were getting restless for the next performance. Some even got drunk enough to feel that they're invincible.** (Ha, wimps. I feel like that everyday!)** And obviously those drunks were getting on the nerves of both the staff and costumers, so it was DJ's job to escort them out with other bouncers. Some were ok with leaving and some actually tried to start something. They'd drunkly frail their arms towards DJ and he'd just move back until the drunks trip on something and 'lose' their little scuffle.

Berry showed up at the bar talking to Sean when DJ returned from sending another one out. When DJ returned to his post, Berry waved him over to talk. "DJ, there's something I need for you to take care of." Berry had a hard glare in his eyes, and his whole body scream seriousness. "It's an important job and you might be the only one who could do it."

* * *

**Looks like you survived through the chapter. And most likely it'll be like this for a while. If it was confusing, I'm sorry, but you have to remember that it's just how life is. Hope I didn't lose any readers and see you all next week.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, sorry for the double lateness, but sometimes I lose inspiration. Great inspiration boosters are reviews, so hope you remember to write one after this.**

* * *

Jay happily changes from that shining flashy dress to her plain jeans and t-shirt. She feels so free from being able to get out of here, and she couldn't wait till she got home and just forget about it till next month. She waves goodbye to Venus and walks out the back door.

The alley looks different from when she first came in. The only source of light there is the single lightbulb just above the door. The sight would have the weak stay put and those without experience to cower, but her home lies in shadows and job is an everyday struggle to not get caught. The dark is her friend and those who encounters her can never get away. So she walks confidently down the alleyway, taking her time to get to the bright lights of the common street.

Her guard is down as she enjoys the quiet of the night, then she feels a presence and soon a hand grabs her from behind and pulls her further away from the common street. She starts to struggle but a hand soon covers her mouth with a moist rag and she would have some trouble fight back half drugged. She gets the hand with the rag off her face, but she breathed in enough to start to feel a little dizzy.

Jay turns away from her attacker and starts to fight against the dizziness to get out of there. But her luck is always the shittiest and she hears two other people with her and her attacker. Not wanting to take any chances, she tries her best to fight off the other who grabs her arm, but this person pulls her close and whispers in her ear. "Don't worry." She knows who the voice belongs to and allows to be the helpless one.

The images she sees get blurrier, and she can tell that Red pulled her behind him to get whoever was aiming for her. Jay hears the struggles and can point out two male voices that she doesn't recognize, most likely someone that just want a good time. After a while, her vision returns a bit and her eyes are now a costumed to the dark and Red's face shows up just inches form hers. "How you feel?" There's a warmth in it, and it suits him in a way that it seems as if he used to be a saviour or protector to those who need it.

Jay weakly smile, still feeling the effects of the strong drugs. "I feel like throwing up." Her voice comes out shaken and she curses to herself for sounding needy. "I'll be fine after some rest."

Red wraps his arm around her and helps her up. Standing caused the blood to flow faster and a bigger wave of nausea flows through her head. "Just lean on me. I'll take you home."

"How about work? You still have like an hour left." Jay starts to push off him, but he tightens his grip on her. "Red, I just need five minutes and I'm good by myself."

Red lets out a chuckle, "Don't worry. It's Berry's orders to escort you home. Besides, you look horrible." Jay weakly kicks him in the shin, but he doesn't even feel it. "Just trust me. I'm not gonna attack you like what those creeps were planning to do. Just relax. I'll help you get home." Still trying her hardest to fight the dizziness resulted into nothing, and soon everything became one colour, resulting in her passing out.

* * *

Jay wakes up in a cold sweat. Looking around, she's glad to see that she's in her bed. Blinking the images from her nightmares away, she's grateful for not waking up in a random place. Being careful, she gets up slowly and waits as her blood flow returns to normal. Looking at the clock, she could tell that she was only out for almost an hour. She then spies a note near her lamp beside her bed and it reads, 'You were out like a light and saying this weird thing about life. I set you down and went back. Be back later, and don't do anything stupid while I'm gone. Who knows what you might do if you're in this state. Red.' Letting out a laugh, she lays back down, planning on getting some more sleep.

Jay lies there in bed. It's her night off today from her usual job but thinking kept her up. She knew that she wouldn't get sleep again tonight. Giving up on trying to sleep, she got up and just stared out her window. Before, she was able to sleep without hassle, but the night she found her brother she stopped getting a good night's rest. A miracle really is that she's able to still be up without the need of caffeine. The night still plays fresh in her mind as it all started because of one mistake she made. Closing her eyes, she can easily think of the night she was sent to Paris to end a life of a public figure for the firsts time.

* * *

_Jay crouched down as she waited for her target to go inside. Usually she's in charge of getting the information from groups, but sometimes she's placed into these kinds of missions. She doesn't like the fact that she has to target a public figure, but orders are orders. She just wish that it'll be called off, this target is still young and has so much potential to make the world a better place. They wanted it to look like a natural death so she has to get closer then she does with others._

_Thinking about leaving and facing a big punishment the door made a soft beep, allowing the holder of the key card to pass through. The lights were still off and the light of the hallway showed a silhouette of a female, most likely her target._

_Jay got into place behind an arm chair and the lights went on. A soft humming came from the target and a wave of innocence came with the voice. It almost brought a tear to her eye at the thought of having to end a life that had no reason to be killed. Then the humming stopped and there was no sound of movement coming from her target. She tried to keep still, but then a hand got hold of her shoulder._

_She would have jumped from shock if she wasn't in stealth mode, but when she turns to face the owner of the hand, her jaw drop then and there. The owner of the hand is her target and musical protege Aria Muses. "If you think that this is what it takes to kill me, then you have it all wrong." Aria's voice lost its usual cheeriness and innocence, and took the tone of deadly and serious. Her black eyes showed no emotion, but Jay felt as if her life was being sucked out of her from just looking into them. "Who sent you?"_

_Jay's voice was taken out of her as a cold smile came to the Heiress' face. "You don't want to know." A dry whisper escaped her lips and she stood up so that the two could see eye to eye. Their height was close to one another and unknown to the other, they were heavily armed just under their clothes. Jay moved her arm and a blade came out of her sleeve and she aimed to hit the neck, her boss said a quiet kill but desperate times. Aria didn't even flinched as the blade got closer and closer to her neck. Her black eyes morphed red and a flash of movement had metal clanging with another. Jay has shock written all over her face, '_how can she stop me in that frame of time. Where did that even come from._'_

_"You're pretty skilled, but you'll have to try much harder." Aria twisted her blade and knocked the blade out of Jay's hand. Without blinking, Jay got another blade out and charged again, while Aria gets out of the way with only a second to spare. Jay tries again, but this time Aria disappeared and got behind Jay, a knife just touching the skin of her neck. "It's my win, now who wants me dead."_

_"Kill me. I'll never tell you." Jay's voice came out as a harsh whisper, and she could feel the blood slowly flowing down her neck. However, Aria didn't comply, instead she let out a dry chuckle. "What's so funny?"_

_"I find that your so called loyalty to your master is amusing. You're not even loyal to your so called master." The blade moved slightly away from her neck, "You don't even want to do this. The only one you want dead is that master of yours."_

_Jay's eyes flew open and dared to look into the eyes of her target. She could read that this wasn't the first time for Aria, there's was like a hidden rage inside the musician that mirrored hers but the difference was the intensity of that rage. It clearly shows that Aria had a deep rage inside her, and for the first time in a while Jay felt scared. "Do you even understand that I have no choice?" Jay finally got her voice back, but her declaration still didn't move Aria._

_"You always have a choice. It's just a matter of finding it." Suddenly the blade left her neck and Jay turned to fact her could be killer. This time Aria's eyes returned to it's regular dark color and it held understanding in her situation. "If you ever want to leave and hide from the Knights then you can ask for my help." Aria handed over a business black business card and all it has is a number that's barley seeable. "And if you don't believe that I know what I'm talking about, then answer this. Do you know how the fall of the Kages came?" At the mention of the hidden assassins group, Aria's eyes shone crimson again._

_Jay didn't want to believe it, but Aria just named two of the worlds most dangerous groups without even blinking. Not even the public has knowledge of the groups existence. Then it came to her, "You're one of them!" Aria nods, and she felt lucky to even be standing. The Kages were known for being able to kill anyone within a heartbeat and they're never one you want to anger. "How'd you know what group I'm in?"_

_"Your fighting style." And that was the end of the conversation. "Now I suggest you leave now. Tell your master that Aria got scared and called security before you could even get close. You have five seconds." With that, Aria changed to her usual helplessness and scream at the top of her lungs. Jay took the cheque and jumped out of the window. Hoping that the evidence left behind would be destroyed before it even gets to the police._

* * *

Jay then stops the memory from playing, since just a few hours later she finds her brother missing. And soon dead the next day. The images don't go away though as the bloody images just plays through her head. She's scared to close her eyes since it makes the images more vivid, but she needs to meditate so that she can calm herself down.

Giving up with meditation, she sits against her bed frame and looks at the business card she always keeps with her. It's changed over the years as new wrinkles show every now and then on the black card. She's never once called the number printed on the card, but she did get some more information about her only target she let go. It seems that Aria has made a great name for herself over the years and is one of the most influential women in the world when it comes to both business and politics. With just one word from her mouth, all of the dark secrets of the criminal world will come out and the hierarchy would fall, bring down top names in the world for being associated with them. However, that'll also bring down her name as well as make her a top target for every criminal group out there.

Ruffling her hair to get the thought of political power out of her head, she looks back at the card. Maybe the reason why Aria hasn't moved is because she's waiting for something to happen. Maybe she's waiting for her to call and ask for her help so that everything will fall. Jay lets out a scream of frustration and hits her head on the wall. Groaning from the pain, Red comes running in through the door. "Are you ok?" Jay nods as she rubs the back of her head to heal the bump. "What happened?" Red sits beside her to examine the wound.

"It's fine, I just need to remember to not be thinking too much." Jay waves his hands away and gives him a reassuring smile. "I'm fine, thanks for taking care of me."

Red nods, still looking a little worried. "Does this happen often?"

Jay tips her head to the side in a questioning manner, "Does what happen often? If you mean screaming at myself, no. The people trying to drug and rape me. It's Gotham." Her smile drips with sarcasm as Red rolls his eyes.

"Yes I meant the attempted rape." Red then got really serious. "But what was that back there?You could have easily taken them to the ground. Why didn't you fight back?"

Jay gives a sad smile. "They know my face, and I can't have any bad publicity happen to Berry's lounge, so I can't go full out without them getting seriously hurt." Jay stretches and crosses her arms behind her head. "Besides, they might not believe that it was self defence when one of them has their arm badly disconnected."

Jay jokingly smiles, but they both know that she would have done it when given the chance. Red let out a half-hearted let out a chuckle as he brushes hair out of his eyes, "Well, looks like I have to make sure you don't harm any innocent bystanders. No wonder Berry told me it's a very important job."

"Really?" Her eyebrow arches, showing a really big expression of disbelief. Shaking it off, she changes the topic. "Enough about that. How did you find your first day?"

Red shrugs as the recent image of his job plays. "It's not that bad. I thought it'll be much worst." Then a devilish smirk lights up his face. "Nice dress by the way." Jay's face turns crimson as she tries to hit the smirk right off his face. He pushes her back into her covers and gets up, starting to leave. "Taking a better look at you now, you seem still a bit out of it. Time for children to go to bed." He stops as he starts to head out of the doorway, "Oh, and you sounded great tonight." He closed the door just in time for a pillow to hit it.

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**Anyone else getting a sense of Deja-vu? I do! Word to the people who knows what I'm talking about! Sorry again about the lateness, but reviews help the updating process since you tell me you want more. See you Saturday! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Welcome to a new chapter! I have nothing to add, except for you to enjoy!**

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Jason's been getting the hang of working as a bartender. It's been a little over a week since he first started, and it's actually more fun then he first thought it'll be like. He's also getting pretty good with mixing easy cocktails together, and according to Sean he's learning faster then your average rookie.

It's a regular Friday night shift, and he's been doing his regular routines. It's getting pretty late now and his shift's almost over for the night. That's when his night's been shifted from casual to deadly.

DJ's just cleaning the counter with moist cloth when a couple comes in through the doors. Nothing out of the ordinary, just a couple decked out in the latest high end fashion. Typical rich. Taking a quick glance he sees a striking tall mysterious type man with a drop dead gorgeous Barbie doll. The couple sit in the area DJ works in and he walks up to them to ask their orders.

He quickly writes down their order, and he can't wait till he leaves. This lady just doesn't know how to shut up. "Oh Brucie, why are we here? The place is a total bore!" DJ's eyes slightly widen at the name. Taking a glance through his pereferal vision and can clearly see the face of his former mentor. He lowers his head more, grateful for the dim lighting and curtain of shadows given by the bar that's hiding him. "I mean look at the place! It's totally dead." The room was pretty busy actually and some great jazz tunes are being played to liven up the mood.

DJ gives Sean the orders and he quickly makes them and hands the drinks for DJ to serve. He gives the drinks to Bruce and his beaut, hoping that he wouldn't get recognized.

* * *

As the bartender places the drinks down in front of them, Bruce turns to grab the drink and sees the hand that brought it. The right hand has a noticeable scar forming a half circle on the inside of the first joint of the middle finger. In that one second of seeing it, a flash of memories flooded his head.

Bruce couldn't believe it, the last time he's seen that scar was from a form child of his. He takes a look at the owner of the hand, but it was too dark for a positive identification. The hand starts to pull away, so he screwed the need to look at the face and grabs the hand before it leaves the table. "Jason?" Bruce wanted his voice to sound sure, but he couldn't help the hesitation from his voice.

He watches closely as the bar tender shows signs of confusion and shock. But that still doesn't give a positive sign of whether it was his lost son or not. "Excuse me, but I think you have me confused with someone else. I've never been a Jason, though I do have a J in my name." The voice that spoke didn't sound like the voice he last heard from his lost son on that final battle. This voice sound scared and not as bloodthirsty as his son's, almost like this person has no hidden motive behind his words.

Bruce reluctantly let go of the hand and tries to hide his disappointment with a smile. "I'm sorry, it's just that you remind me of someone I used to know." He sees the bartender nod and turn to the co-worker who called his name. 'So his name is DJ.' Inwardly sighing, he shakes his wishful thinking and turns back to his date. 'Bruce, he's gone. It's in the past now.' However, with that thought in mind, he still feels like Jason's out there. They could never find the body through the wreckage and there was no reports of someone getting admitted into a hospital with his description. It's like Jason just disappeared.

There was no way for Jason to have left that site unharmed. Even he has gotten badly injured and had Dick fill in for him until he had healed a little bit. The trail all ends on that night, and the city thinks that the Red Hood is dead so he finds himself believing it a bit as well. Bruce has to forget about this encounter, or he'll feel even worst then when he knew Jason was dead.

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Jason let out a sigh of relief as he got changed out of his uniform. It was a very close call, but he held it together and everything was in his favor. He's just glad that he was left off early and there'll be a little chance of Bruce seeing him again.

Looking at the mirror in the locker room, he knows if they were to meet in the light then Bruce would defiantly arrest him and hand him over to the cops.

Before all this, he would have been proud of ending those criminals. But now, he wasn't so sure. Right now he's doing a crime by having a fake identification and he might be rooming with someone having to do with the criminal world. So he can't really say that what he did was just. Maybe he did go a little overboard with killing those thugs, but would he be forgiven of his crimes? No, that's not how the justice system works. They let the Batman beat criminals and harms them, but that's the Batman, and he never ends a life. Sighing, he closes his locker and starts to head out.

The streets are full of life as he walks back home. Some cars past by and he watches them with a sidelong glance as he still walks forward. The cars remind him of some old memories that should have died long ago, but they remain to breath in his mind and start to grow, almost yelling at him to notice their presence. However, he blocks them off and turns back to the front. There's no reason to be reminiscent right now.

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Bruce is finally glad to get out and get in the car. The reason he choose that lounge was because it wasn't that loud, but his guest however didn't like it and tested his every nerve the whole time. He's just glad that she's passed out in the back seat and Alfred took nothing of it, knowing full well that silence is best at this moment.

He got in the front passenger seat to give his drunk date the comfort of a makeshift bed and watches the lights go by. Falling halfway into a sleep, his eyes catch someone familiar. Under a street light waiting for the light to change, there stood Jason alive and well. There's no mistaking it. Even without the mask on, he can tell it's Jason by the shape of the face and hard set expression. Even without seeing the eyes for over five years, he can tell that it's his son.

The light then changed and Bruce is jolted awake as he watches Jason disappear into the crowd. "Master Bruce?" Alfred's voice broke through his thoughts and his concentration from the crowd. "Are you alright?"

Taking another second to see if he'll be able to get another glimpse, to no avail, he turns to his loyal butler. "I'm fine. Just getting over this headache."

Alfred studies him for a second, but returned to focusing on driving. Alfred can read his master like a book, and finds himself treating him as his own kin. So Alfred knows full well that Brice isn't feeling well, and wishes to keep it to himself. Alfred doesn't mind, he knows full well that Bruce would tell him everything when he's ready or needs another opinion.

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Jason walks up the steps out of habit and starts to look through his pockets for his key. Successful in his search, he turns the corner to the apartment door when he sees it wide open.

The door frame has holes where the lock would be around and there's also sighs that the door was rammed in. There's also little droplets of blood on the floor and what he could see of the room looks as if a struggle has taken place in it.

Without blinking, he puts his guard up as he takes careful steps into the room. Scanning, nothing else seems out of place throughout the whole room besides the coffee table and couch. The little blood trail lead to behind the couch. He looks down to the blood trail and sees that it has already dried and browned. Following the trail, his eyes catch a pair of shoes he failed to noticed before. Those shoes were attached to a body, and that body still held on to the disappearing string called life.

Taking a closer step, he sees that there's multiple wounds on the body and a sleeping dart just a few inches away from their hand. Another step and he can now see who the person is. Wide eyed with shock he runs closer to Jay lying there on her stomach, and starts to wake her up. "Jay! Hey, wake up!" He rolls her over to see her with a peaceful look on her face. "Jay, come on! Get out of dreamland!" Feeling frustrated he gives up on being kind and slaps her in the face.

The slap makes a loud, empty sound through the apartment room and the only thing she does is stir. He shakes her again and she's a bit more responsive now and her eyes flutter open. Her eyes are still slightly foggy, but they hold life and that's all he needs to know. "Hey there sleeping beauty." Putting a light on things helped as she rolls her eyes and becomes more alert at every breath she takes in. "We need to get you to a hospital. I'll go call..." But she shakes her head and holds a strong plea in her eyes. "You're crazy!"

"Please." Jay's voice comes strong and healthy. Jason looks at her like she's crazy, but then he remembers giving a request like that when they first met. This is just history repeating itself, but this time there isn't any clear signs that she'll being going off to the next world anytime soon. Jay can easily see that he's being compliant with her pleas and she smiles while trying to get up.

Jason sees her try to get up and he helps her up. Jason leads her to the couch and she takes a seat with Jason being careful not to hurt her anymore. He turns to turn on the light and now with the light on, he can see the huge blood stain on her back and he can't help but feel like she shouldn't be alive right about now. "Here, let me help you."

She shakes her head, looking as if the wounds around her body isn't even there. "I'm fine." She gasps in pain when he pokes the wound, "The hell Red!"

"You helped me, it's my turn to help you. Now sit down." She sits and he goes to grab the first aid kit. He comes back soon later and sit behinds her. "I'm going to need you to take off your shirt. Unless you want some help with that."

"I can undress myself thank you very much." She sneered as she tries to get the article of clothing off with little pain possible, to no avail. Jason held in a chuckle as he helps her remove the shirt and examine the wound on her back. There in her flesh is a shiny bullet just inches away from her spinal cord, luckily it hasn't exploded or it'll take even longer to take out. Being careful about not hurting her, he's able to cut the wound deeper to get to the bullet and start to pull it out. During that process he can tell that she was trying her hardest not to scream or curse out a storm, though there were some in different languages just under her breath.

After what felt like hours for her, she hears the distinct clang of metal hitting hardwood and she knows that the worst part was over. He gently disinfected the wound and wrap it tightly with gauze, then moved onto the other wounds located on her shoulder blades.

By the looks of it, it seems as she landed hard on her back from an explosion of some sort and skidded down the pavement for a good while. There's small bits of derby and rocks in the cuts, maybe even a few bits of glass, but other then that it doesn't look that bad. He quickly washes the foreign objects out of her wounds and gets ready to wrap it when a problem arises. "Jay, not to sound like a pervert or anything, but I need you to take off your bra." Her head whipped around so fast he thought that she might have given herself whiplash. But before she could say anything he opened his mouth, "There's even some more cuts under there and you need that disinfected. We also only have wraps. So unless you want to not be able to sleep on you're bed tonight, then I suggest we get this over with quickly and be done with it." He can tell that she didn't like the idea, but complied anyways.

He finished quickly and started to put stuff away as she got up and got to her room. The moment he put the first aid away, he got to the front of her bedroom door and knocked on it. She ignored the first time he knocked, but he's getting the answers tonight even if it kills him. And it might just kill him, since Jay actually did open the door and the first thing he notices is the a mark VII desert eagle being pointed between his eyes. "Really? Are you that mad at me?" He tried to play it off as it was nothing, but the look in her eyes is ice cold and there's not a single hint of hesitation. It's the look of having done it before, and in a way it only half surprised him.

As gently as he could, he pushes the gun to aim it to hit the floor and she let him, but to her it's wouldn't make a difference. "I just want to talk. It's the only way to kill my curiosity." Jay searched his eyes for anything to help her resolve to kill him, but then again she swore to never kill outside her hit list. That'll just put her over the edge. Without saying anything, Jason lead her back to the couch and they sat on opposite ends, like the distance would help. Jason sat so he was facing the TV while Jay sat so her back was to the window and she was facing Jason. Gun still in her hand, she put the safety on and calmed herself down a bit. When he heard the click of the safety he found it best to ask now. "What did you do to get yourself like this?" He leaned back on the couch and turned to face her.

There was silent for a while and he could tell that Jay was having an argument with herself of whether to tell the truth or not. Finally she lets out a heavy sigh and places her head on top of her knees. "I had a job to do. A hit if you like to call it that." Her eyes became faded as the memory played in her head, "The boss said that it'll be an easy in and out, but he didn't tell me that others were there. Or that a bomb was going to be set off."

He watches her carefully, trying to see if she'll say more. When she doesn't he goes a different route. "Who's this boss?"

Again with the pause and debate going on in her head. "It's my father."

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**Well, now we have this to deal with. Bruce comes in now, he'll do something. Also more characters are coming! Tune in next time! Hint: Reviews=weekly updates=longer chapters! TILL NEXT TIME!**


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